The Corrib gas project entails exploiting a natural gas deposit off the northwest coast of Ireland. Natural gas is a Gaseous Fossil fuel consisting primarily of Methane but including significant quantities of Ethane, Propane, Ireland (pronounced /ˈaɾlənd/ Éire) is the third largest island in Europe, and the twentieth-largest island in the world The field is located about 80 km off Erris Head in County Mayo, in water depths of 355 metres. Erris Head is at the northernmost tip of the Mullet Peninsula in northwest County Mayo, Ireland. The natural gas field, discovered in 1996, was the first reported commercial natural gas discovery in Ireland since the Kinsale Head gas field in 1973. Oil and Natural gas are produced by the same geological process anaerobic Decay of Organic matter deep under the Earth's surface The gas is from Triassic strata. The Triassic is a geologic period and system that extends from about 251 to 199 Ma (million years ago The company set up to exploit the field is a conventure of Shell E&P Ireland (operator 45%), Statoil Exploration (Ireland) Limited (36. Statoil ASA was a Norwegian Petroleum company established in 1972, now part of StatoilHydro. 5%), and Marathon International Petroleum Hibernia Limited (18. Marathon Oil Corporation, based in Houston Texas, is a worldwide Oil and Natural gas exploration and production company 5%). Reserves in the field are believed to be about 30 billion cubic metres (1 trillion ft³, 70% the volume of the Kinsale field).
The Shell to Sea campaign vehemently opposes the current plans for the project, which it regards as dangerous. Shell to Sea (in Irish, Shell chun Sáile) is a campaign based in County Mayo, Ireland which opposed the proposed construction of a high-pressure The level of opposition to the current configuration of the project has led to the refinery building site at Bellanaboy being the most heavily-guarded in Ireland, with scores of security working around the clock, assisted by sometimes hundreds of Gardaí. ga '''''Garda Síochána na hÉireann''''' (ˈgaːrdə ʃiːˈxaːnə nə ˈheːɾʲən Irish for "Peace Guard of Ireland" often rendered
Shell have proposed to develop the Corrib field as a sub-sea production facility with onshore processing. ga '''''Garda Síochána na hÉireann''''' (ˈgaːrdə ʃiːˈxaːnə nə ˈheːɾʲən Irish for "Peace Guard of Ireland" often rendered Shell to Sea (in Irish, Shell chun Sáile) is a campaign based in County Mayo, Ireland which opposed the proposed construction of a high-pressure Royal Dutch Shell plc, commonly known simply as Shell, is a multinational oil company of Dutch and British origins This method of development is claimed by Shell to be in line with best industry practice for gas fields of this type, but no other refinery in the world is so close to a residential community and regional water supply. Water supply is the process of self-provision or provision by third parties of water of various qualities to different users Many people, especially those who live near the proposed pipeline and refinery, are deeply concerned about the health, safety and environmental impact of the onshore aspects of the scheme, and, citing Shell's record, do not believe the company's assurances. Others are extremely unhappy with the irregularities and precedents surrounding the project. Sinn Féin called for an inquiry into the Corrib deal as early as 2001. Sinn Féin () is a political party in Ireland. The current party led by Gerry Adams was formed following a split in January 1970 Protests by residents have been ongoing daily at the refinery site since the summer of 2005, when five local men were jailed for contempt of court after refusing Shell access to their lands. The Rossport Five (Cúigear Ros Dumhach are James Brendan Philbin brothers Philip and Vincent McGrath Willie Corduff and Micheál Ó Seighin Contempt of court is a court ruling which in the context of a court trial or hearing deems an individual as having been disrespectful of the court its process and its invested
The Shell to Sea campaign, (which is trying to have the gas refined at sea rather than inland) was born during their imprisonment, and commands widespread support in County Mayo. A poll conducted throughout the county by TNS/MRBI on behalf of RTÉ's Nuacht (the state broadcaster's Irish language news programme) in September 2006 [1] showed that "6 in 10 feel the Corrib Gas terminal should be located offshore at sea, with just under one quarter supporting the Bellanaboy option. Since the late 16th century the Island of Ireland has been divided into 32 counties ( Irish language contae or condae Irish (ga ''Gaeilge'' is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish. The offshore alternative has strongest support amongst those aged under 49 years, and those residing in Castlebar/Ballinrobe/ Claremorris and Westport/Belmullet areas. Castlebar ( is the County town of and at the centre of County Mayo, Ireland. Ballinrobe (Baile an Róba is a town in County Mayo, Ireland. Claremorris (Clár Clainne Mhuiris is a Town in County Mayo in the west of Ireland, at the junction of the N17 and the N60 national Westport ( is a Town in County Mayo in Ireland. It is situated on the west coast of Ireland, at the south-east corner of Clew Bay Belmullet, (official name Béal an Mhuirthead) is a market Town with a population of around 2000 lying on The Mullet Peninsula in the barony "
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Project proposal
There are essentially four parts to the proposed Corrib project:
- the offshore operations including the wells and subsea facilities
- the offshore section of the pipeline
- the onshore section of the pipeline
- the gas processing plant at Bellanaboy, Co. Mayo
The second two have proved extremely contentious, and were objected to by both An Taisce and Dúchas (Dúchas was abolished not long after this objection). An Taisce ( Irish for The Treasury) also known as the National Trust for Ireland, was established in 1948 with a similar mission to Dúchas - The Heritage Service ( Irish, "Heritage" is the former Irish State body responsible for national monuments and historic properties Planning permission for the refinery was originally refused unequivocally, and the onshore section of the pipeline was not subject to any planning regulation whatsoever.
Irregularities
Political opponents
Michael Ring was the highest-profile Fine Gael opponent of the onshore refinery until doing a U-turn on the issue. The Corrib gas controversy has been generated by the plans of of Shell E&P Ireland, Statoil Exploration (Ireland Limited, Marathon International Petroleum Hibernia A " flip-flop " (used mostly in the United States) or a U-turn (used in the United Kingdom) is a sudden real or apparent change of policy or No FG or Progressive Democrat elected representative now opposes the government's and Shell's plans. The Progressive Democrats (An Páirtí Daonlathach lit The Democratic Party) commonly called The PDs, are a Free market liberal party in Newport councillor (formerly Senator) Frank Chambers and Belmullet councillor Tim Quinn are the only Fianna Fáil politicians who have gone against their party's wishes. Newport (Baile Uí Fhiacháin is a small town in County Mayo, Ireland. Seanad Éireann (ɕan̪ˠad̪ˠ erʲan̪ˠ English Senate of Ireland) also known unofficially as the Senate, is the Upper house of the Oireachtas Frank Chambers (born 3 March 1949) is a Fianna Fáil politician from Newport County Mayo in Ireland. Belmullet, (official name Béal an Mhuirthead) is a market Town with a population of around 2000 lying on The Mullet Peninsula in the barony Sinn Féin backs the Shell to Sea campaign as policy (although local Sinn Féin member Paddy Ruddy has been employed by Shell [2]), as did the Green Party until they entered government with Fianna Fáil and the PDs. The Green Party (Comhaontas Glas lit Green Alliance) is a green Political party in Ireland. Much of the Labour Party also opposes the current project configuration, with party president Michael D. Higgins being the most prominent opponent. The Labour Party (Páirtí an Lucht Oibre is a Democratic socialist and Social democratic Political party in the Republic of Ireland. Michael Daniel Higgins (born 18 April 1941 known in Irish as Micheál D
Safety and Environmental Concerns
Refinery Site
Planning permission for the refinery was refused unequivocally by Senior Planning Inspector Kevin Moore, of An Bord Pleanála (the Irish planning authority). An Bord Pleanála ( English: The Planning Board) is an independent statutory administrative tribunal that decides on appeals from planning decisions made by local His report stated: "From a strategic planning perspective, this is the wrong site; from the perspective of Government policy which seeks to foster balanced regional development, this is the wrong site; from the perspective of minimising environmental impact, this is the wrong site; and consequently, from the perspective of sustainable development, this is the wrong site. At a time when the Board is now required, in accordance with the Local Government (Planning and Development) Act, 2000, to have regard to the proper planning and sustainable development of an area in which a development is proposed to be constructed, it is my submission that the proposed development of a large gas processing terminal at this rural, scenic, and unserviced area on a bogland hill some 8 kilometres inland from the Mayo coastland landfall location, with all its site development works difficulties, public safety concerns, adverse visual, ecological, and traffic impacts, and a range of other significant environmental impacts, defies any rational understanding of the term “sustainability”. It is an irony that this large industrial proposal is linked with a natural gas resource, the exploitation of which adheres to the concept of sustainability. "
Following this report, senior Shell executives met with Taoiseach Bertie Ahern. The Taoiseach (ˈtiːʃəx in English t̪ˠiːʃʲəx (plural Taoisigh ( or) in Irish) also referred to as An Taoiseach ( t̪ˠiːʃʲəx is the the Patrick Bartholomew "Bertie" Ahern ( Irish: Pádraig Parthalán Ó hEachthairn, born 12 September 1951 is an Irish politician who served Ahern then met with the board of An Bord Pleanála. They agreed to ignore Moore's report, [3] and the refinery was given the green light.
The cleaning terminal, a large combustion plant, is a huge project. It would require in excess of 120 Megawatts of power to operate. The watt (symbol W) is the SI derived unit of power, equal to one Joule of energy per Second. The power would come from burning off the uncleaned gas condensate, containing oxides of carbon and nitrogen, sulphur dioxide, methane and ozone. An oxide is a Chemical compound containing at least one Oxygen atom as well as at least one other element Carbon (kɑɹbən is a Chemical element with the symbol C and its Atomic number is 6 Nitrogen (ˈnaɪtɹəʤɪn is a Chemical element that has the symbol N and Atomic number 7 and Atomic weight 14 Methane is a Chemical compound with the molecular formula. It is the simplest Alkane, and the principal component of Natural gas. OZONE is an object oriented Operating system written in the C programming language. There would be nine chimneys, four of them approximately 140 feet (43 m) high. These would release carbon dioxide and methane equivalent to the global warming potential of 27,000 dairy cows. Global warming is the increase in the average measured temperature of the
The waste water problem is twofold:
- There is a pipe to take waste impurities to sea and a perforated perimeter ditch which would surround the drainage from the site.
- The waste water storage sump is designed to withstand only a few hours of continuous rainfall, though nearby Crossmolina had 106 days of consecutive rainfall during the autumn of 2004. Crossmolina (Crois Uí Mhaoilíona lit Cross of Mullany) is a town in northern County Mayo, Ireland, as well as the name of the Parish Overflow from the sump will flow into Carrowmore Lake, the drinking water supply of 10,000 Erris residents. [4]
This untreated waste water would contain many toxic substances, including lead, nickel, magnesium, phosphorus, chromium, arsenic, mercury and the radioactive gas radon. Characteristics Lead has a dull luster and is a dense, Ductile, very soft highly Nickel (ˈnɪkəl is a metallic Chemical element with the symbol Ni and Atomic number 28 Magnesium (mægˈniːziəm is a Chemical element with the symbol Mg, Atomic number 12 Atomic weight 24 Phosphorus, (ˈfɒsfərəs is the Chemical element that has the symbol P and Atomic number 15 Chromium (ˈkroʊmiəm is a Chemical element which has the symbol Cr and Atomic number 24 Arsenic (ˈɑrsənɪk is a Chemical element that has the symbol As and Atomic number of 33 Mercury (ˈmɜrkjʊri also called quicksilver or hydrargyrum, is a Chemical element with the symbol Hg ( Latinized hydrargyrum Radioactive decay is the process in which an unstable Atomic nucleus loses energy by emitting ionizing particles and Radiation. Radon (ˈreɪdɒn is the Chemical element that has the symbol Rn and Atomic number 86 Already aluminium levels in the lake (due to runoff from the construction) are far in excess of World Health Organisation limits [5]. WikipediaNaming While usually a popular destination for fishing, for the first time ever Carrowmore Lake has been declared unsafe, in early summer of 2007.
The refinery would be constructed on blanket bog. Blanket bog or Blanket Mire is an area of peatland forming where there is a climate of high rainfall and a low level of evapotranspiration allowing peat to develop not Shell’s plan to stabilise this involves mixing in cement to form a hard surface. In the most general sense of the word a cement is a binder a substance which sets and hardens independently and can bind other materials together This process has only ever had small field trials and lab tests and creates a reaction which produces the very toxic hexavalent chromium. Hexavalent chromium ( Cr(VI) compounds are those which contain the element Chromium in the +6 Oxidation state.
The Environmental Protection Agency awarded a licence to operate the refinery in November 2007, more than two years after construction began. The Environmental Protection Agency ( EPA) (An Ghníomhaireacht um Chaomhnú Comhshaoil has responsibilities for a wide range of licensing enforcement monitoring and assessment
Pipeline Route
The upstream high pressure gas pipeline that connects the well to the inland refinery site runs through the area of Rossport, through villages and alongside peoples' homes. For the Ontario town see Rossport Ontario Rossport (official name Ros Dumhach) is a Gaeltacht Village The pressure inside the pipeline would be up to four times greater than that of the highest pressure Bord Gáis pipelines and will be going through boggy land with a recent history of serious landslides. Bord Gáis Éireann - The Irish Gas Board, normally branded as Bord Gáis, is the main supplier and distributor of pipeline Natural gas in the A landslide is a geological phenomenon which includes a wide range of ground movement such as rock falls deep failure of slopes and shallow debris flows which can occur The gas pipeline would also have adjoining pipelines carrying hydraulic fluid, cleansing acids and a waste pipe, as well as electric cables.
Frequently described as a "high pressure" pipeline, the pipeline will have an operating pressure of 120 Bar and a maximum design pressure of 345 Bar. The bar (symbol bar) decibar (symbol dbar) and the millibar (symbol mbar, also mb are units of Pressure. It is untreated, that is, odourless, without the added smell for detecting leaks. To compare, in Kinsale the gas is refined at sea and piped ashore at a much lower pressure and odorised. Kinsale (Cionn tSáile is a town in County Cork, Ireland. Located some 25 km south of Cork City on the coast near the Old Head of Kinsale The highest pressure Bord Gáis pipelines, in the so-called Transmission network, bringing the gas cross-country or overseas to Scotland, run at 16 – 70 bar pressure. Scotland ( Gaelic: Alba) is a Country in northwest Europethat occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain.
The large pressure is necessary as the pipeline would be pumping the gas straight out of the field to the onshore refinery, whereas normally the refining takes place out at sea. This development is so unprecedented that the relevant Irish legislation and regulations assumes its non-existence, that is, current legislation applies to off-shore upstream pipelines and to on-land ones with similar levels of pressure to those used by Bord Gáis. Legislation (or " Statutory law " is law which has been promulgated (or " Enacted quot by a Legislature or other Governing This article is for the legal term For regulation of genes see Regulation of gene expression. The Irish government decreed the pipeline was not to be subject to planning permission as they considered it an offshore development, despite the fact that it runs inland for over 9 km.
Broadhaven Bay
Broadhaven Bay is where Shell want to discharge toxic waste from the refining process. Due to the bay’s circular tidal pattern and semi-enclosed nature this toxic waste is far more likely to stay within the bay rather than be washed out to sea.
A UCC research team found that the bay was an important breeding and rearing area for whales and dolphins [6]. University College Cork ( UCC) is a constituent university of the National University of Ireland, the university is located in Cork. Whales are marine mammals which are neither Dolphins (ie members of the families Delphinidae or Platanistoidae) nor Porpoises Orcas Dolphins are Marine mammals that are closely related to Whales and Porpoises There are almost forty species of dolphin in seventeen genera. They recorded over 220 sightings of seven whale and dolphin species including sightings of the relatively rare Risso's Dolphin, plus sightings of two seal species and marine mammals such as basking sharks and a sea turtle in Broadhaven Bay and north-west Mayo waters. The Risso's Dolphin ( Grampus griseus) is the only Species of Dolphin in the Genus Grampus. Pinnipeds ("fin-feet" lit "winged feet" or fin-footed mammals are a widely distributed and diverse group of semi-aquatic marine Mammals comprising The basking shark, Cetorhinus maximus, is the second largest Fish, after the Whale shark. Sea turtles ( Superfamily Chelonioidea) are Turtles found in all the world's oceans except the Arctic Ocean.
Broadhaven Bay is a Special Area of Conservation under European Union regulations. A Special Area of Conservation (SAC is defined in the European Commission Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC also known as the Directive on the Conservation of Natural Habitats The European Union ( EU) is a political and economic union of twenty-seven member states, located primarily in According to state heritage agency Dúchas “Broadhaven Bay supports an internationally important number of Brent Goose” as well as regionally important populations of other birds. Dúchas - The Heritage Service ( Irish, "Heritage" is the former Irish State body responsible for national monuments and historic properties The Brent Goose ( Branta bernicla) a Goose of the Genus Branta, is known in North America as Brant.
The pipeline would pass through the machair sand dunes/coastal grasslands at one end of Broadhaven Bay. This article is about a geographic landform For the TV series see Machair (TV series The Gaelic word machair or machar refers to a fertile In physical Geography, a dune is a Hill of Sand built by Aeolian processes. These constitute a habitat unique to northwest Ireland and northwest Scotland. Scotland ( Gaelic: Alba) is a Country in northwest Europethat occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain.
Shell's reputation
Quite aside from the immediate safety and environmental concerns, many Erris residents have serious qualms about having Shell as a neighbour given their past record, especially in Nigeria [7] (see controversies surrounding Royal Dutch Shell and Ken Saro-Wiwa). Nigeria, officially named the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal Constitutional republic comprising thirty-six states and one Federal There have been concerns over Royal Dutch Shell over environmental and health and safety related issues as well as Kenule "Ken" Beeson Saro-Wiwa ( October 10, 1941 &ndash November 10, 1995) was a Nigerian author television producer and
Opposition escalates
On 29 June 2005, five local landowners, the Rossport Five, were jailed after being held in contempt of court for breaking a High Court injunction which put them under a legal obligation to allow Shell workers on their lands [8]. Events 512 - A Solar eclipse is recorded by a monastic chronicler in Ireland. Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Rossport Five (Cúigear Ros Dumhach are James Brendan Philbin brothers Philip and Vincent McGrath Willie Corduff and Micheál Ó Seighin Contempt of court is a court ruling which in the context of a court trial or hearing deems an individual as having been disrespectful of the court its process and its invested The High Court (An Ard-Chúirt of Ireland is a Court which deals at first instance with the most serious and important civil and criminal cases and also An injunction is an Equitable remedy in the form of a Court order, whereby a party is required to do or interact with in certain ways all right or to refrain from These five men are: James Brendan Philbin, brothers Philip and Vincent McGrath, Willie Corduff and Micheál Ó Seighin. Demonstrations took place around the country in the support of the men and the issue was raised in the national parliament, the Oireachtas [9]. The Oireachtas (ɛrʲaxt̪ˠasˠ is the "national parliament" or Legislature of Ireland, sometimes referred to as Oireachtas Éireann. After spending 94 days in Cloverhill Prison, they were released on 30 September 2005, when Shell, having been subjected to prolonged opprobrium, applied to the High Court to have the injunction lifted [10]. Events 1399 - Henry IV is proclaimed King of England. 1744 - France and Spain defeat the Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The previously disparate and fragmented opposition to the project had united during the men's imprisonment, and became Shell to Sea after their release. Shell to Sea (in Irish, Shell chun Sáile) is a campaign based in County Mayo, Ireland which opposed the proposed construction of a high-pressure
The Shell to Sea campaign continued to call for the route of the pipeline to be changed, as well as the location of the refinery. Rossport Solidarity Camp was deliberately located on the beach at Glengad close to the landfall of the proposed pipeline, at the request of residents of Rossport. Rossport Solidarity Camp (An Campa Dlúthchomhar was established in the middle of June 2005 at the request of residents of Rossport, in north-west County Mayo In April 2007, in a victory for the campaign, the High Court ruled that Shell cannot use the pipeline route they wanted. Shell continues construction at Bellinaboy, after recently admitting that they will once again have to resort to Compulsory Acquisition Orders for their pipeline.
In the autumn of 2006, Shell resumed work, enabled by An Garda Siochana baton-charging protesters. ga '''''Garda Síochána na hÉireann''''' (ˈgaːrdə ʃiːˈxaːnə nə ˈheːɾʲən Irish for "Peace Guard of Ireland" often rendered This violence caused many injuries and some hospitalisations. [11],[12] The threat of Garda violence resulted in a scaling-down of the protests.
Safety reviews
The Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, Noel Dempsey, commissioned a company to produce what was called an "Independent Safety Review" of the pipeline. The Minister for Communications Energy and Natural Resources (Aire Cumarsáide Fuinnimh agus Achmhainní Nádúrtha is the senior minister at the Department of Communications Noel Dempsey (Nollaig Ó Díomasaigh born 6 January 1953 is a senior Irish Fianna Fáil politician Hours after the company produced its report, it emerged that it was jointly owned by Shell and British Petroleum. BP plc, previously known as British Petroleum, is the third largest global Energy company, a multinational oil company (" Oil major Dempsey, who seemed genuinely ignorant of this, denied the report was compromised but agreed to commission another. The second review was strongly criticised by those opposed to the project for failing to consider alternatives to refining the gas onshore. The authors of the review, Advantica, said:
“Proper consideration will be given to safety issues in the selection process for the preferred design option and the locations of the landfall, pipeline route and terminal” and:
“Provided that it will be demonstrated that the pressure in the onshore pipeline will be limited effectively, and that the recommendations made somewhere else in this report are followed, we (Advantica) believe that there will be a massive safety margin in the pipeline design, and the pipeline design and proposed route should be accepted as meeting or exceeding international standards in terms of acceptability of risk and international best practice for high pressure pipelines. ”
Another company, Accufacts Inc. , also produced a report on the pipeline [13] for the Centre for Public Inquiry, concentrating on the safety aspects and concerns surrounding the issue. The Centre for Public Inquiry (Fiosrú an Phobail was established in February 2005 as a non-governmental body to " It was highly critical of the current plans for the pipeline, and skeptical of the assurances given. The author said:
"It should be fairly obvious by now that past information on this project has been less than complete. Much of this information appears to be of a propaganda nature intended to spin public relations to an ill informed or misinformed public or government. In today’s information age this is a tactic fraught with risks as the deceptions are uncovered. Regarding the proposed onshore pipeline route, serious challenges should be raised as to any risk analysis that fails to adequately address the issues raised by the production pipeline, as the thermal impact zones for this very distinctive high pressure pipeline are quite large with a high probability of mortality. . . "
"If the Gas Processing Plant site location were to remain as proposed, we advise a reroute of the proposed pipeline incorporating safety buffer zones of 200 metres for dwellings and at least 400 metres for unsheltered individuals. "
"Placement of a Gas Process Plant on a shallow offshore platform would substantially reduce production pipeline rupture impact zones associated with specific pipeline design modifications. A transmission pipeline from such an offshore facility could be operated at lower pressures, move much higher quality gas, and permit appropriate cleaning and smart pigging programs that would reduce the potential impact zone associated with a gas transmission pipeline failure. "
Other experts have also rubbished Advantica's claims. Some contend that the safety zone around the pipeline should be at least 500 metres (the norm in the United States) from any dwellings [14]. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Philip McGrath, jailed for three months for his opposition to the original pipeline route, lives within 70 metres of it. In all other countries with experience of refineries and their attendant risks (such as Scotland), it is unheard of that a refinery should be built within the catchment area of a drinking water supply, as Shell intends for Bellanaboy [15]. Scotland ( Gaelic: Alba) is a Country in northwest Europethat occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain.
See also
External links
- Centre For Public Inquiry's review of events surrounding the Corrib gas project
- Technical details of the Corrib project from Shell's offshore-technology.com
- Technical details of proposed pipeline from Accufacts Inc.
- Shell's page on Corrib project
- Mayo Gas Info
- Advantica's review of onshore pipeline
- Bitter dispute over gas pipeline — BBC news article on controversy
- Buckfastforbreakfast A look at the varied media response to the Corrib controversy. An article entitled "Sharpening Shell’s safety culture" was published on 10 August 2007 on the Portal website of the energy multi-national Royal Dutch Shell
- Gas Lads, article from Magill on resources giveaway
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